- VW targets $6.8 billion in cuts to close profit gap with rivals – Automotive News: Volkswagen AG plans to cut costs and boost productivity at the VW brand by $6.8 billion by 2017 to lift sagging profitability.
- 2015 Tokyo Motor Show to return to October after schedule mishap – Automotive News: The Tokyo Motor Show, accidentally booked last year to overlap with shows in Los Angeles and Guangzhou, will return to its traditional late October slot in 2015 in a bid to boost overseas attendance.
- VW Vows Painful $6.8 Billion Cost Drive – WSJ: German automotive group Volkswagen AG is launching a robust cost-cutting campaign to improve profits at the company’s namesake VW brand.
- Toyota Prius Plug-in hybrid records 698mpg Nurburgring lap – Autocar: Japanese petrol-electric hybrid gives a new meaning to the term ‘Green Hell’ as it completes an economy run around the 12.8-mile NordschleifeA Toyota Prius Plug-in has returned a 698mpg fuel consumption figure on an economy run around the 12.8-mile Nürburgring Nordschleife.
- Despite Skeptics, Fuel-Cell Vehicles Hit the Market – thedetroitbureau.com: Are they “fool cells,” or is hydrogen the “fuel of the future.? Hyundai’s first fuel-cell vehicles, a hydrogen-powered version of the Tucson SUV, has just gone on sale in S. California, and Honda and Toyota will soon follow, with other makers likely also to bring these super-clean vehicles to market.
- US: Honda starts on Acura TLX at Marysville – Just-auto: Honda has started Acura TLX production at its Marysville plant in Ohio ahead of first US sales in August. The model replaces the TL and TSX and now over 90% of Acura vehicles sold in America are produced there.
- South African metalworkers employers withdraw wage offer – Automotive News: South Africa’s steel and engineering employers group withdrew a “final” wage offer made to the striking NUMSA union. The strike has affected production at Ford, Toyota and GM.
- SWEDEN: XC90 makes way for next generation – Just-auto: Geely’s Volvo Cars has produced its last XC90 at its Torslanda factory in Sweden and the tooling for the now-jurassic vehicle, first seen at the Detroit show in 2002, is being shipped to China.
- Forecast Sees Toyota Profits Up 31% on Record Sales – Wards: Goldman Sachs also predicts global light-vehicle sales will grow 3.4% annually over the next six years to 104 million units in fiscal 2020, up from 82.4 million in 2013 and a projected 85.1 million in fiscal 2014.
- SOUTH KOREA: BMW and Samsung SDI expand battery partnership – Just-auto: BMW Group and Samsung SDI plan to expand their supply relationship for battery cells for electro-mobility. The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that will see supply volumes of battery cells from Samsung SDI to BMW rise.
- BMW open to sharing battery technology with rivals – Automotive News: BMW is open to sharing with rival automakers the EV battery cell technology it co-developed with Samsung SDI. Sharing the technology would reduce the cost of the battery cells — the most expensive part of an electric vehicle.
- More luxury for revised Range Rover – Autocar: Order books open this month for the 2015 model year Range Rover, which gets a plush new trim level and a tweaked SDV8 powerplant.
- Jaguar confirms September reveal for all-new XE – Autocar: New BMW 3-series rival will major on dynamic ability, thanks to F-type inspired suspension and lightweight architecture.
- EPA seeks real-world tests of mileage claims – Automotive News: An EPA proposal would require automakers to road test vehicles to verify mileage figures before they are published on window stickers and other sources, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing EPA officials.
- Bugatti Mulls Veyron Replacement – a Hybrid – thedetroitbureau.com: Two words no one expects to hear used together: Veyron Hybrid. It might be happening, according to a report from Reuters. The company is pondering a replacement for the much ballyhooed Veyron and following the lead of others, such as Porsche, Ferrari and McLaren, with hybrid super cars may be the way to go.
- VW to build SUV at Chattanooga plant – FT: VW plans to create 2,000 jobs by adding production of a seven-seat midsized SUV in its bid to overtake Toyota as the world’s biggest carmaker by sales
- SOUTH AFRICA: Employers warn of ‘indefinite strike’ as automakers suffer – Just-auto: South African employers are warning of the consequences of an ‘indefinite strike’ as the country’s huge metalworking walk-out now enters its third week, slashing automotive component availability.
- Acura Going All-In with New TLX – thedetroitbureau.com: Acura is playing its new TLX sports sedan like a winning poker hand, going all-in on the mid-range model it is launching for 2014. Can the new 2015 Acura TLX turn the struggling brand around?
- US: VW Chattanooga wins SUV build – Just-auto: Volkswagen Group America said its Passat plant in Chattanooga will add production of a seven-seat SUV at a cost of US$900m (EUR643m), adding 2,000 additional jobs. About US$600m (EUR432m) will be spent in Tennessee. A local R&D centre is also planned.
- US: NHTSA investigates older Ford sedans for steering issue – Just-auto: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened an investigation into around 500,000 older model Ford sedans for issues with the steering, reported Autoguide.com.
- RUSSIA: Datsun on-DO now in production at AvtoVAZ – Just-auto: Production of the new Datsun on-DO, a family sedan said to have been designed and engineered specifically for Russia, has started at the AvotoVAZ plant in Togliatti in partnership with the Renault Nissan Alliance.